Candidate for: Kenton County Commissioner District 3;
Party: Republican;
Status: Challenger;
Richard Kimmich, who prefers to go by “Scott,” is one of a packed field of candidates in the race for Kenton County commissioner in district 3, which encompasses much of the northwestern portion of the county (note: Although commissioners’ seats are divided into districts, they are elected at-large, meaning everyone in the county can vote for them).
He will face Republicans Rebecca Reckers and Matthew Hayden in the May primary. Whoever wins that race will face off against whoever wins the Democratic primary: either Jordan Baldridge or John Busse.
Click here to learn more about what a county commissioner does
Kimmich works in real estate and has had a long career in politics, both at the local and state levels. Most recently, he served as the Republican representative on the Kenton County Board of Elections, a position he resigned from last summer after occupying the position for 11 years.
He served as Kenton County Deputy Judge from 1999 to 2010. He was the Kenton County representative on the District Board of Health for six years and served as chair of the board in 2024 and 2025. He has also served in administrative and appointed positions at both the local and the state level.
“I’m entering this race to expand the debate from buzzwords like ‘restoring fiscal responsibility,’ transparency’ and the ‘elimination of waste,’” Kimmich said. Kimmich later contrasted such “political platitudes,” as he put it, with more “specific” policy ideas and proposals.
“Public service should be about policies and ideas, not political platitudes,” Kimmich said. He also stated that he would be releasing a series of policy papers in the coming months, laying out what he hopes to accomplish if elected and “develop a narrative based on ideas.” He gave an example after filing in November.
“One of my top priorities will be to seek the creation of an office of Veterans Affairs to provide a conduit at the county level for veterans to get services through partnering with the private sector and officials at the state and federal level,” Kimmich said. “I want to fund this office through the mental health taxes collected, and I do not want the county to become a direct service provider.”
Kimmich plans to release regular platform updates as the campaign progresses.